Mercato Metropolitano’s Elephant & Castle site to be redeveloped

Food hall operator Mercato Metropolitano’s Elephant & Castle site in south London is to be redeveloped following approval of the Borough Triangle building project.

 

Construction company Berkeley Group’s plans to create 44-storey and 38-storey skyscrapers containing nearly 900 new homes were passed this week by Southwark Council.

 

An office block, a café or retail space and a new community centre also form part of the development.

 

Part of the site currently houses Mercato Metropolitano’s original London location, which has been in operation since 2016.

 

The formerly abandoned paper factory now plays host to street food traders including Pizzeria Napoletana, Hermanos Tacos, Argentinean Grill and Ramen Impossible.

 

However, council planning documents stated that in response to traders’ concerns, Berkeley Group revised its scheme to include a temporary building on the site to secure continuity of 12 of the 33 street food brands before the current space is redeveloped.

 

The Borough Triangle development will include a new food hall space, and Berkeley will give first right of application to Mercato Metropolitano’s current traders. The developer is also offering a £200,000 relocation fund for the remaining traders as well as £40,000 for an independent business adviser to guide traders through the relocation process.

 

Some of the food hall’s current traders penned letters to Southwark Council in support of the plans.

 

Andy and Sophie Ng, owners of Mauritian cuisine brand Mazavaroo Club, wrote: “While Mercato is an important community asset and provides us with a place to engage with our customers, in recent years the premises have become tired and traders and customers would benefit from a modern market that would function better. Even in the absence of development, the current market would likely need some improvement to the conditions to ensure its long-term successful operation, and this would probably have an impact on traders.

 

“We are therefore supportive of Berkeley’s plans to provide a modern, sustainable market on-site for traders to return to in their proposed development.”

 

Bijay Thakuri and Kamala Bista, founders of Himalayan Dumplings, said: “We understand why the existing market requires updating and that works would be required for it to continue operating in the future, and we are supportive of Berkeley’s plans to provide a modern Mercato Metropolitano in the completed development which will provide traders with a better functioning environment from which to trade.

 

“Like many others, we initially held concerns about the period that we would be unable to continue trading on the site whilst the new market was being constructed. However, after several meetings with Berkeley, we consider that they have listened to our concerns and understood our business’s needs.”

 

The Borough Triangle development is due to begin construction in 2026, with completion slated for 2034.

 

Mercato Metropolitano surrendered the lease of its Elephant & Castle site to a third party last December.

 

The food hall operator opened a long-awaited site in Ilford, east London, last July, bringing its venue number to four, alongside locations in Mayfair and Canary Wharf.

 

The company swung to a loss in 2023 after a restructuring of the business, but the directors were “confident in the in the group’s prospects”.

 

The Caterer has contacted Mercato Metropolitano for comment.